Wisdom Beyond the Years, Susan Karla Andersen [ebook reader macos TXT] 📗

Wisdom Beyond the Years

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Wisdom Beyond the Years

By Susan K. Andersen

 

Chapter One . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . What a Pain!

 

Chapter Two . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dental Surgery

 

Chapter Three . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Will it Hurt Much?

 

Chapter Four . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . Twilight Sleep

 

Chapter Five . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Trip Home

 

Chapter Six . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Recovery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter One – What a Pain!

Tara was a typical teenage girl. She had flowing, dark blonde hair, and big, beautiful

blue eyes. She loved to practice putting on makeup and putting her hair up in many different styles. She loved all the things any young teenage girl loves, including boys. She very seldom complained about anything. When she did, it was usually to the point of medical attention. That’s why her mom seemed concerned right away when she mentioned her teeth hurt in the back of her mouth. At first, mom was only mildly concerned because she knew it was her wisdom teeth coming in, but after the second day, and Tara was still in pain, mom’s concern grew.

“Let me take a look in your mouth. I’m sure it’s just your wisdom teeth coming in,” mom said in her doctorial voice as she shined a flashlight in Tara’s mouth.

“Okay, let me know if it’s in yet,” Tara said opening her mouth, hoping the pain would diminish if the tooth had finally come in.

“Part of it’s in, but it’s real red and looks infected,” mom said with pain in her voice, “Why didn’t you say something sooner if you were in so much pain, honey? I’ll call the dentist tomorrow and see if you can get you in right away. In the meantime, make sure you take some Tylenol or Motrin for the pain. Have you taken any lately?”

“No, you know me. I can handle a lot of pain,” Tara said toughly.

“You don’t have to try to be tough and handle the pain,” mom said comfortingly. Tara’s mom was older when she had children and always kept her cool when dealing with any situation. She said it just came with getting older. Mom said she had been through a lot of bad situations in the past and got used to dealing with emergencies.

“Maybe you’ll have to get your head cut off from the infection,” Tara’s younger sister, Joslyn, teased, “I heard that can happen.” Joslyn was a tomboy and loved to play video games. She would play them all day long if mom would let her. She did not have anything in common with her older sister. She was in middle school and did not have any interest in make-up, hair, or boys. The only thing she liked was to play the same video games a lot of boys play.

“No, it can’t!” exclaimed Tara, disgusted with her sister’s comment. Tara turned from her sister and tried to ignore her.

“Joslyn, don’t pick on her. Besides, you’ll get your wisdom teeth in a few years and you might have some pain too. You won’t want Tara to tease you,” mom explained trying to prevent another fight. Joslyn was opposite in everything from Tara. The two girls picked on each other constantly, and mom always stepped in to prevent the fight.

Chapter Two – Dental Surgery

The next day mom called the dentist office and was surprised she was able to get Tara in right away; although, they knew she was in pain and probably needed to be seen right away. It was usually a very busy office during the summer with school kids getting visits in before school started again in the fall. When they arrived there was only one other older woman waiting to get in to see the dentist.

Mom filled out the usual paperwork, which included reporting the pain Tara had experienced from the tooth. “Is this the only tooth that’s been hurting?” Mom asked, ready to mark the answer on the sheet, “And, how would you rate the pain on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the worst?”

“Yes, this is the only one that hurts. Wait . . . the other one hurt a month ago, but only for a couple days. This one hurts the worst. On a scale of 1 to 10, I’d say it’s probably about a 6 or 7.

Mom marked the answer and continued to ask questions, “The top ones haven’t hurt at all?”

“No, just the bottom ones,” Tara replied.

“So the bottom right one has been hurting just a few days?” Mom asked.

“Actually, it started hurting about a month ago,” Tara stated calmly.

“A month ago and you are just now telling me!” Mom said excitedly. “Plus, your mouth looks swollen from the infection.”

“It didn’t hurt that bad at first,” Tara said, “it just got real bad a few days ago.”

“Tara?” the dental hygienist asked in the now crowded room as Tara stood up and was ushered back to the dentist chair. Mom just shook her head as Tara was taken back to see the dentist. She could never understand why her daughter would never admit to any pain or discomfort. All she had to do was admit she had pain and take pain relievers. Instead, her daughter always insisted on being strong enough to handle anything.

Mom sat in the waiting room watching a news program for several minutes. Then, the dentist came to the door, “Mrs. Robert, may I talk with you for a minute?”

“Of course,” mom stood up and walked over to the dentist, anxiously waiting to hear what she had to say.

“It looks like your daughter’s wisdom teeth are impacted and need to come out. They should remove all four at once. The one on the bottom right is infected and has a small growth on it. It could be a calcium deposit, or there’s a small chance it could be cancer. We will be sending you to Iowa City to have a specialist check it out and they’ll also remove her wisdom teeth.”

“Cancer?” Mom asked stunned.

“Well, it could be, but it could be something minor. We just want them to take a look at it,” the dentist stated in a matter-of-fact voice, as if you heard the word cancer with every diagnosis.

“Did you tell Tara it could be cancer?” Mom asked horrified.

“No, I didn’t want to alarm her. It may not be, but I do have to mention the options just in case,” the dentist said turning away to go back to Tara’s room, “We’ll help you get an appointment in Iowa City right away to get this taken care of. The receptionist will help you get it set up before you leave.”

Tara appeared through the door right after the appointment was made in Iowa City just three days away. The x-rays would be sent electronically; although, the specialist in Iowa City would probably take a different set once they arrived to get a clearer picture of the growth. Mom wanted to make sure Tara never found about the possibility of it being cancerous unless she had to. Mom was worried enough for the both of them.

“Hi, Mom! Did the dentist tell you I have to have my wisdom teeth all cut out?” Tara asked with a panic look in her eyes.

“Yes, she told me. The appointment is all set up. Don’t worry about it. They’ll put you to sleep and you won’t feel a thing. It’ll be over before you know it. Plus, you only have it done once in your life and never have to worry about it again.” Mom tried to sound calm and comforting.

“I have to have them out in three days?” Tara panicked.

“No, we just have an appointment with the specialist then to find out when they’ll do the surgery. I’m guessing they’ll take them out in another week. We’ll find out in three days,” mom tried to mask her panic stricken voice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter Three – Will it Hurt Much?

“I don’t have to go with on Thursday, do I?” Joslyn asked in an unconcerned voice.

“No, you’ll stay home and babysit your brother,” replied mom.

“Good because that would be so boring,” Joslyn stated.

Mom wanted to make sure Joslyn didn’t hear the word cancer mentioned since she was so insensitive to Tara’s situation. She also didn’t want Joslyn to tease Tara. She wasn’t sure if she would tease her, or become more sensitive if she knew her sister might have cancer. She didn’t want to take any chances.

The days flew by and mom made sure Tara was taking Motrin or Tylenol constantly for the pain. She could tell by the look on Tara’s face that she was terrified at the thought of her first surgery, as well as the pain. Tara could hardly eat or sleep for three days. Mom tried to comfort her and answer her questions.

“Will I feel anything during the surgery?” Tara inquired.

“No, you’ll be asleep,” mom reported.

“Will I still be able to breathe?” Tara questioned again.

“Of course you’ll be able to breathe,” mom surprisingly stated.

Tara was busy contacting friends and family on Facebook about her upcoming surgery. One of mom’s friends told Tara her horror story about getting her wisdom teeth cut out. Diane told Tara about how she had to stay in the hospital overnight and was vomiting for several hours after she woke up. She also told her that her face was so swollen she couldn’t even open her mouth for a week and could only eat through a straw. Mom told her she remembered when her friend Diane got her teeth cut out when they were both in high school. Mom reassured her it wasn’t like that anymore. Diane had her teeth cut out in the 70’s and was sure the procedure had changed since then.

“Will I have to stay overnight in the hospital?” Tara still questioned.

“No, I’m sure you’ll be able to come home the same day. Besides, I’ll be with you the entire time at the hospital,” mom reassured her. Tara had never even had a cavity and had no idea what it was like to have her teeth drilled and filled, let alone to have a procedure like this. She didn’t blame her for being scared.

Fortunately, three other people told Tara they had their wisdom teeth cut out and never had any problems at all. Mom was thankful for these friends. They told Tara they were sore for a